KOULES FORTRESS Traditional Cache
erik88l-r: Cache is long gone, owner is accepting fraudulent "foto logs" from those who probably cheat at solitaire too.
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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A̶ ̶p̶h̶y̶s̶i̶c̶a̶l̶ ̶g̶e̶o̶c̶a̶c̶h̶e̶ ̶o̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶a̶c̶t̶u̶a̶l̶ ̶F̶o̶r̶t̶r̶e̶s̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶K̶o̶u̶l̶e̶s̶.̶
(GEOCACHE HAD TO BE TEMPORARILY REMOVED FROM FORTRESS WALLS INTO A NEW NEARBY LOCATION DUE TO MAINTENANCE BEING CURRENTLY CARRIED OUT AND ΝΕW FENCING CURRENTLY IN PLACE...)
This is a busy spot and maintenance may be frequently required. For updates and any possible changes make sure to read the whole description and hints as well as paying attention to the uploaded photos.
Below you will find some basic information about the Koules landmark.
The fortress dominating the entrance to the Venetian harbour has been variously referred to as:
Castello del Molo, (Castle of the dock/port/harbour)
Rocca al Mare (Fortress/rock/stronghold of the Sea, as it was known to the Venetians) and in recent years,
Koules. (From the ottoman words of the last big wars "Su Kulesi" - {Water Fortress} - Castle of the Seas)
Literally Koules means Fortress.
The fortress predates the second Venetian fortifications around the city,
and was built so as to protect the area enclosed by the (old) mole.
The Venetian Castello acquired its final form over the period 1523-1540, in replacement of an older fortress destroyed by earthquakes, wars and other phenomena like erosion.
The fortress is first attested in the early 13th century.
The earliest depiction we have is that by the Florentine monk Cristoforo Buondelmonti in 1429.
The devastating force of the sea was (and is) such that the walls and foundations
were subject to periodic need of repair. (Just like today)
Together with the Palaiokastro Fortress the two fortresses protected with their cannons the seaside from the most nortwestern point you can see with your eyes from Koules up to the most eastern point you can see and beyond, in the direction of the Nikos Kazantzakis airport, covering both the two seaways created by the Dia island.
You are looking for a facelike stone, in one of the
important places of the city, where land, sea and sky meet.
The seaward exterior castle walls are up to 8.7 meters thick at ground level, while on the city side the thicknes of the exterior walls is at least 6.9 meters thick!
As one can see the thickness of the walls varies according to requirements. The same applies for thiknesses of the interior walls which range from 1.36 meters to 3 meters.
As per the description on the northern wall, the fortress as it stands today, was built (as also stated earlier) during the years 1523-1540.
As it is hard to be very detailed herein about the endless aspects of the fortress and its features,
one may wish to resolve to further reading, externally, in other sources.
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When finding this geocache, please try to exercise the necessary stealth and return the cache carefully and correctly to its hide for the next person to enjoy ! :)
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Due to maintenance work on the fortress there is a new fence being constructed around the structure and the cache was moved to a new temporary location until it can be moved again to its original one.
No new coordinates are needed as the new spot is quite near. To find the new hide you need to find the digging triangle man. I bet there is a tube where he is digging!
So! First two photos are of no help anymore but the third one with the digging man may be of interest to you if you really have a hard time finding that cache! ;)
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HAPPY GEOCACHING !!!
(For any inconvenience, ideas or suggestions please comment on logs or send me an e-Mail ! Thank you :)
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
HFR GUR (̶"̶T̶Y̶N̶F̶F̶R̶F̶"̶)̶ ZRGNY FGEVAT GB SVFU GUR PNPUR BHG. YBBX NG GUR QVTTVAT ZNA GB SVAQ GUR TRBPNPUR ARJ YBPNGVBA. N̶A̶Q̶ ̶S̶B̶Y̶Y̶B̶J̶ ̶G̶U̶R̶ ̶U̶N̶C̶C̶L̶ ̶S̶N̶P̶R̶.̶ (ERNQ QRFPEVCGVBA PNERSHYYL)